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বৃহঃস্পতিবার, ৩ জুলাই ২০২৫
১৯ আষাঢ় ১৪৩২
১৯ আষাঢ় ১৪৩২
Thursday, 3rd July 2025
Irish hip-hop trio Kneecap lead anti-Keir Starmer chant at Glastonbury
Irish hip-hop group Kneecap led chants of "Fuck Keir Starmer" and condemned Israel in front of a huge crowd at Glastonbury Festival on Saturday, after the British prime minister had said their appearance was "not appropriate". Politicians and music industry bosses had called on organisers to pull the group after member Liam Óg Ó hAnnaidh, who is known by his stage name Mo Chara, was charged with
Irish hip-hop group Kneecap led chants of "Fuck Keir Starmer" and condemned Israel in front of a huge crowd at Glastonbury Festival on Saturday, after the British prime minister had said their appearance was "not appropriate".
Politicians and music industry bosses had called on organisers to pull the group after member Liam Óg Ó hAnnaidh, who is known by his stage name Mo Chara, was charged with a terrorism offence last month for allegedly displaying a flag of Iran-backed militant group Hezbollah at a concert, AFP reports.
Ó hAnnaidh denied the charge.
"The prime minister of your country, not mine, said he didn't want us to play, so fuck Keir Starmer," Mo Chara told the crowd, wearing the keffiyeh scarf associated with Palestinians.
At least 30,000 people, hundreds of them with Palestinian flags, crammed into the West Holts stage in blazing sunshine to watch the trio, causing organisers to close the area.
After opening their set with "Better Way to Live", which mixes English and Irish, another of the group's members - Móglaí Bap, otherwise known as Naoise Ó Cairealláin - said Mo Chara would be back in court for a "trumped up terrorism charge".
Mo Chara told the crowd the situation over the lawsuit was stressful, but it was minimal compared to what the Palestinians were going through every day.
Later in the set, Mo Chara accused Israel of committing war crimes, saying, "There's no hiding it."
Later in the set, Mo Chara accused Israel of committing war crimes, saying, "There's no hiding it."
Irwin Kelly, 40, said the trio got the crowd really involved in the set. "Obviously it had a bit of controversy surrounding it," he said. "But it's art, it's performance."
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